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Icahn sues Dell over potential buyout

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn is reportedly suing Dell in hopes of derailing a potential buyout from the founder of the struggling PC maker. According to Reuters, Icahn wants to stop Dell from setting a new

Icahn also wants to discount shares from Michael Dell and affiliates since February 5, when the initial buyout offer was announced. The lawsuit also seeks damages from Dell and its board.

On Wednesday, Dell's special committee said they were open to setting a new record date on a vote for the $13.75 offer, but rejected an amendment to exclude abstentions -- which count as "no" votes -- from the final tally.

"A new record date would enable the many shareholders who bought their shares after June 3, 2013 to vote on the transaction while giving all shareholders more time to reflect on where their best interests lie in light of the improved offer," reads an excerpt of the letter.

Boston College associate law professor Brian Quinn says Dell's decision to maintain the rule on abstentions was the right move. "The rule change, though legal, would have been problematic for them because it would have represented the dismantling of some of the procedural safeguards they had put in place," he says. "Dismantling those safeguards because the result would not have been the result they wanted would have been troublesome."

The move is the latest setback in Michael Dell's bid to take the world's third-largest PC maker private. Icahn and Southeastern Asset Management have represented the biggest opponents to the deal, claiming it undervalues the company.